


It Lives in the East and Dies in the West

by Port_4



Category: DreamSMP, Minecraft (Video Game), Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Angst, Childhood Friends to Strangers, Dream but with Anxiety, Fluff and Angst, George is just trying to do his job, Hurt/Comfort, Knight Sapnap (Video Blogging RPF), Medieval AU, Miscommunication, Multi, Overworld Magic, Prince Clay | Dream (Video Blogging RPF), Royal Advisor GeorgeNotFound, Sapnap but people actually recognise he's Smart, Slow Burn, dreamnap, growing up sucks, i gave them all really stupid real names, id apologise if i didnt think they were hliarious, its a big one, its not gay to kiss the homie youve never stopped thinking about for the past decade, more tags will be added as chapters update, nether has a purpose, strangers to not quite enemies, to best friends to lovers
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-22
Updated: 2021-01-14
Packaged: 2021-03-11 01:28:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 8,267
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28236942
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Port_4/pseuds/Port_4
Summary: When you're born into peace, you take a lot of things for granted. You don't know to cherish what's always been there, because it's always been such a constant in your life. You can't picture the world without it. This was the case for Dream- despite being a member of the ruling family, he was blessed with the ability to choose. He was lucky to be able to live a relatively carefree childhood, but even then- reality had to set in at some point. He never really paid attention to what the consequences of his actions were until it came back to bite him in the ass at the worst possible moment.Sapnap, on the other hand, just wants everything to be over already. Fuck magic and fuck you, Dream.In other words, the nether rises, and along with it old grudges tied to forgotten faces.------------------------this was supposed to be a oneshot how did it end up like thisIdea was originally taken from that one tumblr prompt about the medieval equivalent of fake dating for clout, but then I turned around and said 'what if i spend two days pouring over the details because I love to make people hurt'
Relationships: Clay | Dream & GeorgeNotFound (Video Blogging RPF), Clay | Dream/Sapnap (Video Blogging RPF)
Comments: 10
Kudos: 39





	1. The First Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> [crossposted to wattpad on the account @/_dreamnap]  
> [BETA READ BY THE LOVELY HONKUSBONKUS420]
> 
> Sup guys- this is my first time posting in a very, very long time, so bear with me lmao.  
> I've got a couple disclaimers before I can start the story; Hopefully they'll answer some of your questions. 
> 
> \- I'm not entirely sure where, but i read somewhere Dream doesn't really like his real name being used often. I'm not sure of the validity of the statement, but as someone who values their own privacy a shit ton, I'm going to respect it. Everyone's names in this are just modified versions of their IGN. 
> 
> -OBLIGATORY THIS IS SHIPPING CHARACTERS, NOT REAL PEOPLE. As much as I love them, the fact of the matter is none of us really know who they are. We can be as familiar as we want with their personas, but it's important to remember their privacy. Any inspiration i take from irl friendships and interactions are meant to be homages to the og creators, and not me saying "ehuheue kissy kissy"
> 
> -That being said, i take some inspiration from DreamSMP roleplay dynamics but not much, as this is a completely different set of circumstances. Also, i've fucked with everyones ages. 
> 
> -While they may be pretty ooc at the moment, our favourite boys will grow into the characters we recognise later on. The trauma just hasn't hit yet.

A young boy, barely pubescent, rushes through the stone halls of his home, smooth leather shoes thwaping softly against thin woollen carpet as he beelines to his room, shoving himself through the door with the enthusiasm of a child whose lessons finished early. (They hadn’t, but he liked to pretend.) Lucky for him, though, he had plenty of time until the next ones. While most would appreciate the break for what it is, his boon was something of a simpler nature- the ability to leave this spacious home and venture into the woods surrounding without some old hag nagging him at all hours of the day. He shed his little crown, tossing it carelessly onto his 4 poster bed which sat centred in his room and shucking his fine overgarments from his person. He threw them all over the place, uncaring as he proceeded to dig through his own previously-organised wardrobe, pulling out the drabbest rags he could possibly find. He tore it from the back of his closet, lifting the simple shirt up to the light behind him.

He frowned in distaste- they looked nothing like the children from outside the castle wore, but the dark, desaturated colours would have to do. He quickly threw them on, not even bothering to do it up properly before he threw a bag on his back and he ruffled his own spikey blond hair. Not that that would make him any less recognisable, but the effort was there. He grabbed his cloak, tearing it away from its resting hook and over his small shoulder in one swoop. He fastened the clasp around his neck with clumsy fingers, turning slowly with small steps to once more face the door. He huffed, biting his tongue as he struggled to get it to close before finally hearing the satisfactory snap of it catching. He gave a small cheer of accomplishment before finally noticing the current state of his previously spotless room. The boy cringed slightly, almost pitying the chambermaids that will have to clean his mess once more, before toeing on the most worn pair of boots he owned and darting out the bedroom door once more.  
He whisks himself through the halls, doing his best to imitate that of a spectre and remain out of sight (just in case someone wanted to tell his parents), gliding around as quietly as possible- but ultimately failing, as he’s slightly more tangible than your average ghost.

“Prince Dream!” He winced, before remembering himself and schooling his face into that of feigned innocence as he turned to meet the owner of said voice. There stood his tutor (damn his luck), Sir Halo, staring quizzically down at his young pupil from around the corner of a hallway said boy had just rushed past. “Where are you going, His Royal Highness?” 

Sir Halo meant well, surely, but the young prince still felt uneasy under his blank-eyed stare. Nothing against his teacher, obviously. Dream respected the man a great deal, and looked up to him because the man truly seemed to know everything- but in the year or so he’s trained under him, looking the man in the eyes has never been easy. Strange appearances of all kinds, Dream can deal with. It’d be bad for the Crown Prince to scream in the face of an esteemed guest, after all, but one thing he’s never been able to train out of himself was his unease for people with no pupils. Nothing against them, obviously, but yeeesh. 

“I was just going out, Sir.” Despite his discomfort, Dream maintained eye contact. He technically hadn’t done anything wrong (yet)- there was no reason to cow out now. Not that Sir Halo would rat him out- but disappointing him would suck almost as much as being locked in his bedchambers the rest of the day. 

“Were you? Oh, what a coincidence! I could accompany you, if you’d like, I’ve needed to head into the far gardens myself, you see, and I really don’t think your parents would appreciate--”

“No! Nope,” Dream quickly backtracked, flickering his gaze to the side momentarily before looking back up and Sir Halo’s strange visage, friendly as it may be. “No, I’m not headed in that direction. I was just going to wander the grounds a bit, and I’d hate for you to go out of your way just to babysit me.”

SIr Halo pouts ever so slightly. “Well, I didn’t mean it like that at all! I think you’re very capable, young Dream! I’d just hate to see you get into trouble with the King and Queen so soon after last time-” The Prince flushed a light pink, scrunching his eyes shut as he  
quickly raised his hands as if to sweep the very idea out of the air. 

“No no! Sir Halo, I would never. I learned my lesson from last time, I really was just going to explore the grounds a bit. Get some fresh air, enjoy the scenery…” Dream trails off, leaving Sir Halo to hum in contemplation. 

“Well, if you’re sure..” Dream nods, this time remembering his manners and very pointedly not interrupting. The older man sighs, shooing the young royal off in a fond manner. “Fine, fine! But if you get yourself into trouble again, I’ll make you memorize treaties! Word for word, you hear me, you little muffin! The old ones, too!!” In a show of faux-contempt Sir Halo raised one of his hands, making the prince snort as he continued his mad dash to the gates. 

“WH- HEY, WAIT, PRINCE DREAM, WHERE’S YOUR--”

Not bothering to cast another glance behind himself, he smiled as he whipped around the polished stone corners of the many halls, slowly but surely easing his pace as he reached the eastern gates, in hopes of appearing at least a little bit like he was supposed to be here. Crown or no crown. 

He gave small waves to the people he recognised, feeling his grin grow triumphant when they just waved back and let him pass. He was lucky the kingdom he was born into was so prosperous- no need for constant checkpoints! The ones he had to deal with on formal occasions were annoying enough as it is, and he was the prince! He’d hate to see what it was like just to get stopped for walking down the street all the time, anyways. It just sounded plain dumb to him. 

As soon as he left the official grounds of the castle, he broke back into a sprint- cloak billowing behind him as he tore through the long grass fields and towards the nearest outcropping of trees. It was the fastest way to get to the closest town- he would know, as he’s only spent his whole life studying maps of the kingdom. Thanks to a certain someone. Cough, Halo, cough. 

Much too fast for someone his age has any right of being, he reaches the line of underbrush, panting slightly and affixing his hood atop his golden head of hair before carefully stepping through them, determined to reach the smaller town by midday, at least. He wasn’t very graceful, to say the least- tearing through the bushes and getting his cloak stuck on what felt like every other branch. At one point, he swore he felt it rip. Upon inspection, however, that didn’t appear to be the case. Then again, did it matter if it was? Probably would have just helped him blend in better, he rationalised. With that in mind, he continued his way east, letting it snag on whatever it felt like snagging on. He kept his hands by the clasp, however, after the third catch (a particularly brutal one, mind you), made him feel like the forest was just about trying to cut his head off. He continued going as straight as he possibly could, eyes glued to his shoes as he focused on his footing. 

Mid-morning sunlight flits through the deep green leaves above him, easily illuminating his path. A baby breeze swept him along, gently pushing him along his homemade path as he stomped through dead sticks and leaves, almost getting lost in the monotonous lull of the summer season around him.

One, two, tree branch, one, two, random hole (please don't be a snake please don't be a snake), one, two…

It wasn’t until he stepped right over the edge of what he had previously thought was ground that he was pulled from his own head. Over a small ledge and right onto a stony riverbed did Dream fall, letting out a rather undignified and pitchy squawk of dissatisfaction as he landed on his ass. 

“dAMN!” He hissed, rubbing his sore backside with one hand and yanking on his cloak with the other, inadvertently slapping himself with the wet ends in his frustration. He grumbled, continuing to be too far stuck in his own plight to notice the child on the other side of the creek, watching at him with equal amounts of surprise and curiosity. 

“Uh...You good there, dude?” Oh no. Dream’s head whipped up, hair a mess and eyes wide as he stared in absolute shock at the creature before him. Okay, maybe not a creature but- random child he has never seen before. Ever. And Dream knows everyone in the castle- he’s too nosy not to. Does this mean--

“Seriously, are you alright? You look like you rolled down a mountainside on your way here. Also, your staring is freaking me out. You’re creepy.” The boy broke him out of his internal musings, his tanned face going from somewhat concerned to somewhat disgusted over the course of his inquiry, pursing his lips and ducking down to pick.. Something, out of the river. Not quite taking his eyes off Dream, but also not just about to abandon his task for some strange kid that fell down the hill, apparently. “Staring is rude.” Dream barely caught the other boy mumbling, snapping him out of his daze.

“I-What? Yeah, I’m fine. I just wasn’t watching where I was going.” The prince replied, quickly standing and futility attempting to brush the dirt from himself in a couple quick motions. The boy on the other side of the river just raised his eyebrows at him. “Seriously, it’s true! And I’m not creepy, I was just surprised! If anything, you’re creepy for just watching! Who just sits at a river and watches people almost fall in, anyways?” Dream huffs, crossing his arms. 

“Hey, it’s not like I could have warned you, even if i wanted to! You just showed up out of nowhere screaming like some freshly-plucked baby chicken. I don’t know what you think I do, but it’s chores, not helping dumb kids clean off dirt from their britches and kiss their booboos all better.” The boy made a grossly exaggerated kissy face, before scoffing and turning his attention back to the river, not even dignifying Dream with eye contact. Which is, wow, rude much?

“I’ve never been here before, how was I supposed to know there was a cliff?? And I’m not a kid, I’m almost 13!” The boy snorted, still not looking up. “I bet you’re just a baby- you couldn’t have even helped me if you wanted to.” Sure, picking a fight with the only new face he’s seen since the birth of his sister might not have been the best idea Dream’s had, but who would he be if not troublesome? 

“I am nOT! I’m old enough to go to the river without dying, thank you very much-” 

“I WASN’T GONN-” Dream makes a frustrated noise.Oh yeah? What's your age in years, then? 7? 8?”

“lIKE HELL I’D TELL YOU!” The boy fumed, standing from his crouched position on the opposite side of the bank. “It doesn’t matter anyways, at least I didn't need mommy’s permission to come out here.” He sneered, crossing his arms, careful to keep one hand cupped upright at his side. Dream recoiled slightly, one part because yeesh, what kind of insult was that, and two, what on earth makes it look like I needed permission?? 

“I didn’t need anyone's permission! I came out here myself-” 

“Yeah, right. Dressed in your Sunday best?” Dream spluttered, irritation building. Seriously, the first kid remotely close to his age he’s seen in eons and he’s this much of a jerk. Just his luck. 

“Sunday Best? What are you talking about-” The boy groaned, evidently annoyed by Dream’s naivety. 

“You really expect me to believe those are just your running around clothes? What, did your parents get you an extra pair you could rough up when you’re feeling rebellious? Super classy.” As he spoke, the boy waved his arm, gesturing to most of Dream, but most noticeably, Dream’s overshirt, which he had previously thought looked drab enough to be mistaken for a peasant garment. A quick glance from his own tunic to the other boy’s was enough to tell the prince that no, it most certainly did not pass. Not even a little bit, Gods, what was he thinking? 

“Uhm…”

“Uh.” The boy parroted back, unamused. “...You’re weird.” And with that, he successfully dismissed himself from the conversation, squatting back down by the riverbed and scanning it, thick messy locks of black hair obscuring what Dream could only assume was a face of concentration. 

Dream glared at the boy a moment longer, childish frustration ticking the corners of his mouth down before he took this moment to examine his cloak, twisting it out from behind him and holding it as far up as he could. He scanned over the small tears and fresh mud stains that made a home on his previously pristine spruce-brown cloak, one day’s worth of light use in the woods already rendering it basically unpresentable. Even the gold embroidery seemed frayed, he noted with a hint of disappointment. He sighed, dropping it and letting it swing back behind him, lamenting his wet pants before deeming it too late to care anyways, and plopping himself down on the river rocks. The action caused the other boy to glance up, before remembering himself and turning his attention back to the clear waters. There wasn’t much space between them at this point in the river, which gave the prince an ample view of the child before him.

The boy, despite his squeaky voice, seemed to be around his age, (probably younger), but a lot stronger. His hands, wet from periodically getting dipped in the water, already had a healthy amount of calluses in all sorts of places- very much unlike Dream’s own, which were surprisingly soft for someone who liked to consider themselves a rough-and-tumble kid. He seemed to get a lot of sun, too- he looked kind of sunburned in some places. Really sunburned, actually. More of the skin he showed was a peachy red than any kind of natural flesh tone.

He began to tense under the prince's gaze, steadily losing focus on the task at hand, slimey strips of algae slipping from his fingers as he whips his head back up to glare at Dream, uncomfortable with the attention as his bangs flap back into his face. Dream blinks, surprised by the sudden change in posture and straightens, suddenly all the more aware that, yeah, actually, he was being kind of weird. The prince wiggles on his pebble-covered seat for a moment before pushing the initial embarrassment aside and cutting the dark-haired boy off before he can speak. 

“What’s your name?” He asks plainly, trying his best to appear like he wasn’t just caught examining the poor kid. Said kid blinks, before furrowing his brows with impressive skill, suddenly looking much older than even Dream himself. 

“Why should I tell you? You gonna try to steal it?” He asks haughtily, rocking back onto his knees with his feet bent under him, feigning nonchalance. 

“What? Pfb, no, I just wanted to know. To thank the kind soul who saved me from tumbling to my death with his legendary observational skills and brilliant reaction time.” Dream gestures lazily to the meagre 4 foot drop behind him, red clay still visible from when his boots dug in a little too deep and took the top layer of moss with them. The boy just squints at him, before scoffing. 

“Yeah, sure, whatever.” And with that, the boy attempts to end the conversation, turning his attention back to the river. 

“Hey, c’mon, I’m really not gonna steal it, or anything! That only happens in fairy tales. And with faeries. I’m a human, seriously! Faeries aren’t real- cross my heart, I just want to know. I’ll tell you mine, ‘promise.” The Prince, in a fit of desperation he won’t kindly admit to, drops his years of grammar lessons to try to appeal to this river kid. Sorry, Sir Halo. A tense moment of silence begins as they lock eyes, Dream on one side, doing his best to appear trustworthy, and the stranger on the other, doing a great impression of an unamused housecat.

“Tell me yours first.” The boy demands. Dream snorts, but lets this kid have his moment. It’s not every day you get to boss a Prince around for something as ridiculous as their name. 

“Fine, fine. I’m Dream-” Oh shit. Oh Gods above and below, why didn’t I use a fake name? It would have been so easy I’m the crown prince what was I thinking just giving my name out like that oh-

“Thats a dumb name.” What. The boy finally leans backwards, looking infinitely more relaxed on his side of the bank. Dream only watches blankly as he plays with a rock in one hand, the other supporting his weight. Dream can only laugh weakly, almost unbelieving of the response he just got. 

“Hahh, yeah, I guess-”

“I’m Sapnap.” Pleasantries out the window, Dream cannot HELP but comment on this. 

“aND YOU CALLED MY NAME DUMB?” Dream cackles, wheezing between takes. It’s got to be one of the most horrific things Sapnap has ever seen, but he finds himself fighting back a smile all the same. 

“YEAH, I CALLED YOUR NAME DUMB. AT LEAST MINE IS ORIGINAL!!’

“ORIGINAL, HAH!” The prince continues to laugh, rocking back and forth in an effort to keep himself from falling into the river completely, drowning out Sapnap’s shouts of indignation and completely missing the tell-tale warning signs of someone speed-wading water. “Who names their kid Sapnap any-”

In an instant, before Dream can even attempt to compose his royal self, the final wheeze of laughter is knocked out of him as a sopping wet Sapnap comes crashing into his midsection, quickly followed by the ear-rattling sound of tiny stones attempting to shove themselves into his very own joints. 

“LAUGH AT THIS, YOU GREEN-EYED BITCH!” Sapnap’s war cry echoed out, promptly followed by his own body crashing next to Dream’s with a distinct thud. Before Dream can even hope to gather his breath for another bout of laughter, sticky, half-dried algae that was previously cradled oh-so-gently in Sapnap’s off hand is shoved all over his face, the owner of said algae doing his damn best to get it everywhere, hair included. Dream shouts, various profanities, he’s sure, and shoves Sapnap off of him, not even paying attention to his glee-filled face as Dream scrambles to remove the substance from his everywhere, making exaggerated gagging noises in the process. 

“Stop whining, you big baby! Almost 13 my butt, you’re so lame you can’t even handle a little bit of plant!” Sapnap jeers somewhat nonsensically from his seated position a couple feet from where Dream had perched near the water, dipping his hands in and attempting to wash whatever he could find off. 

“It’s algae, dipshit! Of course I don’t want it on me!” Dream responds half-heartedly, not putting nearly enough energy in being mad as he should. What kind of person does that to someone, anyways?? 

Sapnap snorts, brushing his unkempt hair out his face once more with his dirty hand, which, ew and responds; “Duh, I know what it is. That’s why I was collecting it.” Dream scrubs furiously at his face, before turning back to Sapnap with a huff. 

“Why, you woke up this morning with the inexplicable urge to prank some unsuspecting person, and I just happened to be the perfect target?” Dream ranted, running his hands through his hair again, river water and algae making it stick up in even stranger directions than usual. 

“Yeah, totally. Whatever helps you sleep at night.” Sapnap rolled his eyes at Dream’s dramatics, not even bothering to preen himself like the prince was frantically doing- he simply returned to picking algae blooms from rocks.

They sit like that for a while. It’s remarkably quiet- no words spoken and they continue to think their own thoughts. The river burbles softly, shallow and small in this area of the forest and remarkably clear. Dream swears he can see tadpoles zip through the water, reforming in groups after having been disrupted by Sapnap’s prodding a couple feet upstream. The prince, attempting to at least hide his attention better, cast a sideways glance at the tanned boy’s activity. Held close to his person, in one hand was a collection of torn up algae, and the other was dipping in and out of the water, scrubbing it off shallow rocks. Dream wrinkled his nose- just picturing the feeling of it beneath his fingernails was enough to disgust him. 

“What are you doing that for, anyways?” Dream asked, nodding his head towards Sapnap’s cupped hand when he finally caught the other boy’s attention. 

“Oh. I’m collecting it,” Dream’s face dropped, unamused. 

“Yknow-”

“Shut up, dude!” Sapnap laughs. It’s hearty and light. Dream can’t help but let his soured mood lift a bit. “I’m collecting it for like, medicine. If you boil it with milk it’s good to treat burns.” 

“Oh. Really?” Sapnap nods, turning his attention back to the water. 

“Yeah. I’m not really sure why, though. My mom said it works, and she knows a lot.” He shrugs. Moms know a lot that he doesn’t- Dream was willing to take the information at face value.

Dream nods sagely, looking back into the river himself. His reflection dances with the currents, pale skin and freckles standing out almost as much as his eyes. His hair’s still really dirty, though, and he huffs, attempting once more to tug the crusted plant from the formerly bright strands. They sit there for a while longer, Dream staring off into the river and trees, sometimes bothering Sapnap with random questions (most of which he’s almost certain the boy just makes up the answers to- but he’s too focused on his task to even be fun to banter with. Every time he tries, Sapnap just hums noncommitedly. Boring.) 

At some point, when the prince casts his gaze up, Sapnap’s pile of algae had steadily grown from just enough to fit in his palm to needing to be transferred to his shirt. 

“Oh Sweet End!” Dream exclaims, catching Sapnap off guard.

“What??” He blinked owlishly, head snapping towards the prince. 

“Do you really need that much??” Dream gestures to the veritable mountain of mushy plantlife cradled in the other’s makeshift pocket. Sapnap huffs, eyebrows lowering slightly. 

“Well, no, but it’s better to have more-” 

“That’s way more than more! That’s like half the river!” Sapnap flushes. 

“SO?? It’s not like you wanted any! You didn’t even know what it was for! And no one comes over here anyways!!” Dream waves his hand, dismissing the thought. 

“Well, now I do.” He pointedly ignores the incredulous ‘you want some?’ under the other boy’s breath before pulling his small satchel off his back, previously hidden by his cloak. He digs through it, checking for valuables before deeming old assignments and a couple coins unimportant enough to lose. He thrust it in Sapnap’s direction, holding it open. “Instead of dirtying your shirt like that, just use this.” The boy only blinks. 

“I-” He shakes his head. “Where did you even get that?? Are you a thief??” Sapnap leans forward, squinting like Dream’s face can tell him what his mouth won’t. 

“What?? No!!” He wheezes, pitching forward a moment before returning to his normal position. “No, it’s mine, I’m letting you use it, stupid!” 

“I’m not dumping plants in that, it’s all fancy and shit!”

“Just do it! You're gross enough without gross river piss on you!”

“I AM NOT-”

“JUST PUT IT IN THE BAG, SAPNAP--”

“FINE!”

“THANK YOU.” Sapnap unceremoniously dumps the wet flora into what was previously a very dry leather bag, pulling himself away from the water's edge and crossing both his arms and legs, pretending not to watch Dream close the bag with fancy latches and pretending he wasn’t startled when it was shoved into his arms. 

“Wh-” 

“Keep it.” Dream shrugs, standing and attempting to brush the wet sand and dirt from his trousers. “Consider it a payment for showing up at your ‘spot’.” Sapnap stays seated, holding the bag and squinting up at him. 

“...You’re serious?” Sapnap finally asks.

Dream nods. “Yeah. I’ll be coming here more often now, anyways.” Something clicks in Sapnap’s eyes. 

“Oh, are you new here?” The boy stands, throwing the bag strap carelessly over his shoulder. Now next to each other, it's easy to tell they’re similar in age. Both have youthful, round faces, but it looks like Sapnap had his growth spurt first. He smirks, knowing that if he really becomes friends with this weirdo, he’s going to hold it over him. Dream, once more, ignores this with dignity. 

“Uh...kinda?” I mean, he’s not technically lying, right?

“That makes sense then. You certainly don’t act like you’re from here, and I’ve never seen you in the village before.” Sapnap turns his eyes from Dream to nod to the trees on the other side of the river, where he originally stood. Dream smacks his forehead, throwing himself backwards.

“Ahhh, the town!”

“Village.”

“Village, whatever! I was supposed to go there today!” Dream groans. He wasted so much time sitting at the river with some kid, he’s not gonna have enough time to explore and get back before someone's supposed to check on him-

“Don’t sweat it, dude, I’ll show you around text time. I guess.” Only looking slightly uncomfortable (an improvement, the prince notes), he shifts his weight, wet clothes sloshing together. 

“Really?” Sapnap shrugs once more, refusing eye contact. 

“Yeah, I offered, didn't I? I gotta pay you back for the bag somehow.” 

Dream just grins. “Sure, alright. Meet you here noon next week?” 

“Like, today next week?”

“Yeah, what else could I mean?”

“ANY DAY OF-”

“OKAY, OKAY. Noon, next week, the smallest point in the river. Can you make it?” 

Sapnap nods. 

Dream claps him on the shoulder, (friends do that, right? The knights do it to each other all the time, and they get along fine.) waving goodbye quickly before scaling back up the muddy incline. 

“See you then, Sapnap!” Sapnap’s eyebrows twitch up as he waves in return. 

“Bye, Dream?” 

Not willing to give it another thought, Sapnap makes his way across the river once more.


	2. The Second Prologue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> My favourite thing about popular proverbs is how absolutely useless they are. They don't mean jack shit until it's too late. 
> 
> Sapnap and Dream have to learn this the hard way.
> 
> All good things must come to an end, after all.

_I haven’t seen a fish in forever._ Dream mused, crouched by ‘his’ spot on the edge of the bank, wet stick in hand as he prods at the calm currents. Miniature yellow stripes of colour flash in the water below, but he doesn’t really pay them much mind. He’s been waiting for forever (around 10 minutes), and all he wanted to do was see his friend again. Seriously, it’s been almost all winter, who could blame him? No one was allowed out of the castle because of the snowstorms that came from the North. They blasted through the kingdom, locking half of it in ice and burying the other in fresh snow. It wasn’t even the fun kind he could play with, either. He huffed, jabbing the stick deeper into the riverbed before returning to his lazy prodding.

“If he doesn’t come soon, I’m just going to leave.” The prince resolves, tucking himself into his fur cloak and preparing to sit for at least another 30 minutes. Royalty or not, in Dream’s opinion, it was just plain rude to keep people waiting so long. If this was payback for vanishing over the winter, Dream was gonna tear Sapnap a new one, honest! It wasn’t his fault-

“DREAM!” A familiar voice shouted from the trees, promptly followed by thunderous footsteps and high pitched giggles. The prince startled, quickly standing at attention just in time to watch his best friend barrel through the barren trees and promptly JUMP over the river, barely landing on Dream’s side of the bank before barrelling into him. Sapnap’s satchel smacked him on the back upon impact, but he paid it no mind. Dream grunted in surprise, crashing onto the rocks behind him and grabbing onto the nearest object (Sapnap’s shit tunic, which totally wasn’t made for Winter), and flailing ever so slightly. Sapnap ignores the other boy’s semi-apparent discomfort (it was more of a surprise than unwanted, really, but you won’t catch Dream admitting that.) and pulls away, rocking backwards onto his haunches to look Dream in the face. “Holy shit, it’s been forever!” Dream can’t help but smile at his friend, laughing to himself as he boosts himself forward, trying to get comfortable on the riverbank once more. He’d normally throw a fit about Sapnap’s lack of manners, but right now, he was genuinely just glad to see him. And to see that Sapnap wasn’t mad at him. “-I was almost half convinced your stupid butt died in the snow, ‘cause you were too busy fussing about your laces again.” Nevermind, Sapnap sucks. 

“YOU’RE THE ONE THAT WAS LATE! I WAITED HERE FOR FOREVER-” Dream begins, half-amused but heart entirely set on defending himself. His reasons were good, okay? However, Sapnap had other plans, shoving him back over a little harder than could be considered friendly. 

“YOU WAITED? YOU DIDN’T SHOW UP AT ALL THIS WINTER!” The tanned boy, significantly less sunburned than before the winter months, crossed his arms across his own tattered vest and glared at Dream. _Ah._ Suddenly the prince felt a lot less in the right, here. “If anyone should be mad, it’s me. I couldn’t even tell your family you died, stupid!” 

“ME, stupid? You’re stupider for thinking something like snow could kill me!” Sapnap snorts, twisting away from Dream to face the river with him, idly sliding his shoulder bag into his lap. Sapnap casts Dream an unimpressed look, or tries to, rather, as his excitement as seeing the other boy remains palpable. 

“Oh, please, you’re absolutely lost without me. Your knight in shining armour, who should at least be made aware when his _best friend_ is gonna go and vanish off the face of the overworld.” Dream rolls his eyes, fixing his furs around himself once more. 

“I could beat you up without even breaking a sweat, Sapnap.” It’s not exactly a stretch of the truth- Sapnap has never once shown he’s any good at fighting, and Dream’s gotten very good this past season, in his opinion. He twists to look at Sapnap, tilting his head up and grinning. “If anything, I’d be _your knight_ in shining armour.” The prince purses his lips, a mocking lilt in his voice when he continues, edging closer to the other boy. “The Great Dream, loyal defender of the helpless Maiden Sappy!-” Sapnap’s face turns such a deep shade of red so quickly Dream is almost sure he’s managed to give himself frostbite. 

“Shut up!! You’re dumb, and the name is _Sapnap._ Can’t protect me if you can’t even get my name right.” He mumbles, face still flushed as he shoulders away from Dream, digging through the satchel in his lap. Dream only cackles. 

“Sappitus-”

“Shut up.”

“Sapling-”

“DREAM.”

“Sara-peni--”

“drEaM.” Sapnap’s voice cracks on this one, “IF YOU DON’T SHUT UP I WON’T SHARE.” Dream cocks his head to the side, curiosity shutting him up more than the empty threat in Sapnap’s words. Sapnap nods triumphantly and begins to unwrap something from his bag- the marginally appetising smell of it suddenly making Dream aware of just how hungry he was. His gaze flicks between the bag and Sapnap’s red face, the entire thing scrunched up as if he’s eaten something sour. 

“If it’s lemons, I don’t want it.” Sapnap exhales, shucking the rest of the wrapper off and dumping it back into the bag, leaving a decently-sized loaf of bread in his hand. 

“No, idiot. It’s bread. How would I get lemons, anyways? Not everyone can pull things out of their ass, Dreamy.” Oh, no. No thank you. Dream’s nose crinkles in distaste. 

“Please never call me that again.”

“Only if you never call me Sappy again.”

“Give me the bread and we have a deal.”

“Half.”

Dream rolls his eyes, reaching to split it himself. “Sure, whatever.” Sapnap tugs it away at the last minute, faux-suspicious of his friend before tearing it and already taking chunks out with his teeth before Dream’s half is out of his hand. They rearrange themselves on the rocky riverbed, sitting shoulder to shoulder and munching on half-stale bread. Dream can’t say he’s fond of the taste, but food’s food. Sapnap seems to enjoy it well enough, so it’s good enough for him.   
The prince suddenly feels tense, frowning and trying to ignore the sticky, molasses-like crawl of guilt in his sternum. He doesn’t know exactly where Sapnap is from, but he has a feeling judging from the rags his friend wears that this wasn’t something easily shared. Okay- maybe that’s a little harsh. Sapnap doesn’t look bad, and his clothes look sturdy, (Dream confirms with a quick sideways glance), but they’re drab enough to make the bag he carries (Sapnap’s first gift from Dream) look very, very out of place. Dream absently wonders if he’s ever gotten in trouble for carrying it, but figures it’s none of his business. Not yet, anyways. If Sapnap ever says something, maybe he’ll get him something simpler? Wait- no, he might be offended by that- what kind of person downgrades a gift? He can’t just-

“You’re literally steaming, dude.” Dream looks up, locking eyes with a very unimpressed Sapnap. 

“What?” Sapnap, with an abysmal lack of manners, takes another bite from his loaf and gestures vaguely with his free hand. 

“You’re steaming. Thinking way too hard, or whatever. ‘Gonna melt your brain.” He shrugs, blinking lazily as Dream processes. 

“Uh huh. Right. That’s not a thing, but okay.” Dream snorts as Sapnap goes to retort, but is promptly cut off. “I was just thinking. About. Y’know, stuff.” He gives a half shrug and Sapnap just watches from his meal, expression making it very obvious he still thinks Dream is being ridiculous. 

Sapnap opens his mouth to undoubtedly say something rude, but Dream continues. “Like, I don’t really know where you live? We’ve just been meeting up in the woods every week for forever.” The prince picks at the crust of his bread, not looking at the other boy just yet. 

“I mean, yeah. I don’t know where you live either.” Sapnap seems a lot more unbothered by this than Dream would expect. 

“Wh- And you’re just okay with that??” The boy nods, finishing his food. 

“Why wouldn’t I be? It doesn’t really matter, it’s probably just some house in the woods anyways. Unless you’re here to drag me to the Nether or something,” Dream laughs. Yeah, right. Sapnap smiles. “Then it’s not a big deal. You’re just a dumb kid.”

“I’m older than you!” 

“You don’t know that!” Dream gestures pointedly with his bread.

“ONLY BECAUSE YOU HAVEN’T TOLD ME YOUR BIRTHDAY!” Sapnap scoots back, sticking his tongue out. 

“AND I NEVER WILL! JERK!” Dream makes a frustrated noise, both at Sapnap’s antics, and at the fact he can’t bring himself to be genuinely annoyed by such a child. He throws his arms up as he stands, turning away from Sapnap dramatically. 

“Fine! But that means you have to tell me where you live now.”

“WHAT? NO, How is that fair?? I don’t know where you live!” Dream turns, incredulous.

“You said you didn’t care!”

“That’s because neither of us knew! It was a both of us thing, I’m not just gonna let you know everything!” Sapnap props himself up on his knees, edging closer to where Dream paced away. 

“Now I want to know!” 

“No!” 

Dream, in a split second decision, shoves his half eaten piece of bread in Sapnap’s face. Sapnap flinches back, frustrated. 

“Well, I’ll just go then! I can’t trust someone I don’t know anything about-”

“You know my name!”

“And you know my name _and_ age!” Dream crosses his arms, looking down at Sapnap with a very determined gleam in his eye. 

“What- No I don’t?” Anger bleeds from Sapnap’s expression as it’s replaced with confusion. He temporarily breaks eye contact with the prince, relaxing back to sit on his thighs. 

“14.” Dream states, smirking. 

“WH- HEY! You can’t just do that!” Sapnap exclaims, bolting upwards once more. 

“I can, and I did. Age or house, pick now.” 

“No!” Dream shrugs, turning away and walking. 

“Fine, then. I’m just gonna leave. I don’t know when I’ll be able to come back, though, since spring’s only just starting-”

“Hey, wait, c’mon, don’t be like that!” The prince can hear Sapnap shuffle forward on his knees before the boy pushes himself up, slipping in his desperation to reach Dream. “I’m sorry, okay! Don’t go, that’s not fair!” Sapnap spins him around and wow, Dream may have underestimated his strength. Nevertheless, he doesn’t let the surprise show on his face. “Please, stay! It’s been forever since we last hung out!” Sapnap whined, making an impressive show of pouting. Dream, however, does not cave in. 

“It is fair, though.” He replies, diplomatically. “You know two things about me, I should get to know two things about you.” Dream crosses his arms and Sapnap huffs, blowing his choppy bangs out of his face. Sapnap shuffles in place, kicking at the rocks. 

After a small bout of high-pitched mocking, Sapnap mirror’s Dream’s posture. “The village to the East of here.” Dream blinks in surprise. Okay, that makes sense. Probably should have just guessed that. 

“The Kingdom Commune?” 

“What? No, that’s just asking to get robbed. No one actually lives there, people just work at the inns and stuff. People passing through to get to the castle pay really well. I’m from one of the smaller villages closer to the South.”

Dream wracks his brain for a moment, hoping his geography lessons stuck with him as well as he liked to pretend they did. “Rapid’s Keep?” Sapnap flushes again, refusing to make eye contact. 

“It’s a dumb name for a village, I know-”

“No, I actually know someone from there; One of my c- friends is from there.” Dream relaxes ever so slightly when he realises that Sapnap didn’t pick up on his slipup. 

“Yeah? What’s his name?” Sapnap inquires innocently, to the prince’s embarrassment. Dream turns away, attempting to appear nonchalant as he takes his time strolling to an outcropping of rocks. 

“Hhm..” Sapnap follows him, patiently waiting for his response. He sits when Dream does, looking at his face before finally catching on. 

“You don’t actually know, do you?” Sapnap smirks as it’s Dream’s turn to turn pink. 

“I do! He’s cool! He’s smart, and he’s a good cook!” Sapnap rolls his eyes. 

“Yeah, sure.”

“Better than you, anyways.” The prince pretends to eye the bread remaining in his hand with contempt. Honestly, he’s not even sure why he’s still held onto it- he’s not particularly hungry and it really doesn’t taste very good. Sapnap puffs up, however.

“He is not! He’s just some guy you barely know! And it’s not like i made that, anyways!” He gestures wildly, almost slapping it out of Dream’s hand before pouting. “I’m great at cooking! I bet I’m smarter than your dumb friend, too!” He slides into a seated position, sulking against the rock Dream has chosen as his perch. 

The prince lets him stew for a bit, before nudging him with his ankle. Sapnap doesn’t openly acknowledge him, but tilts his head up anyways, so as to easier glare at Dream through his unchanging wild mass of hair. Dream, unaffected, just holds what’s left of his roll out. Sapnap just frowns at him for a couple more seconds before he reaches to grab it, drawing it closer to himself and angrily munching on it. The prince snorts, resting his head on his hands as he stares out into the woods. 

“Yeah, you’re pretty cool.” The prince can basically feel Sapnap preen at the admission, before smirking lazily. “For a baby, I mean.”

He is promptly shoved off his rock. 

\---------------------

It’s been a month since Dream has last seen Sapnap. It really shouldn’t bother him as much as it does- he’s only missed 3 weeks, after all- He’s done worse in the past. Every year, though, Sapnap forgives him easily and Dream does his best to make it up to him anyways. It’s a cycle more regular than Dream being consistent, anyways…

But this time, it feels different. Dream, Crown Prince of Westaken, had just turned 16, and he suddenly had a lot less time on his hands. Maybe Sapnap would understand? It’s not like he didn’t know Dream was royalty- Dream came clean about that after Sapnap tried to keep bitching at him about the attempted birthday gifts. Well, honestly, he would have much preferred to keep it a secret forever- but how was he supposed to know what a normal gift was? He was guessing dates _and_ customs, here! It’s not his fault he was so disconnected from everyday life. Sapnap had been complaining about how his hunting knife broke, so for what Dream assumed was his 14th birthday Dream had one made for him. He was planning on doing the same thing for Drista when she turned 14, it’s not like that was the weird part! The gold inlay may have been a bit much, though. 

Present-day Dream exhaled slowly, letting the controlled stream of air relax him. He couldn’t help but feel anxious. Sapnap handled the news brilliantly, yes, but knowing him, he wasn’t entirely paying attention. Dream fought the urge to wring his hands as he walked down the hall, calm facade not at all betraying how he felt inside. He nodded to the guards stationed outside his chambers, gently waving the servants out. He didn’t feel like dealing with anyone right now. He had to get changed before someone came to collect him for his first Coming of Age coronation- another of Sir Halo’s students, Dream recalled, were mentioned? He was preoccupied when the matter was discussed. He quickly changed out of his preferred greens and into royal blues, racing to tie his boots up just so he had enough time to pace in the privacy of his own room.

 _0Sapnap would just have to deal; it’s not like he’d be gone forever._ Dream reasoned. Flakey as Dream may be, he refused to be unreliable. Not to his kingdom, and not to his friends. Friend. He took a deep breath, smoothing the front of his shirt as he exhaled slow. It was thicker than he’d prefer, but soft, with embroidered ridges of gold thread. He ran his hand through his hair, absentmindedly messing it up before placing his official crown on, ignorant of its sudden weight as he gazed out the window. If he wanted, he could almost pretend he was watching the East facing woods, and not the gardens. _Autumn had graced them early,_ he hummed, brow furrowing as he lost track of himself, reflecting on the shifting colours of the leaves. 

Firm knocking made him jump, and he spun to face the door, more startled than he should have been.

“Y-Yes?” Princes don’t stutter, Dream, pull it together. 

“Are you decent, You Highness?” Okay, so definitely the new guy. The voice sounded bored and only slightly older than him. Dream tilted his head to the side. 

“I..Yes? Wh-” And with that, the owner of said voice appeared. A man, roughly his height (maybe shorter?), threw the door open with one lanky arm, holding the other close to his side. He had short brown hair, and the most ridiculous glasses Dream had ever seen. 

“Good. Sir Halo requested me to check on you before the ceremony, and as you appear to be ready, I recommend we take our leave.” The man readjusted the books under his arm, expression largely hidden by the monstrous things on his face. 

Dream, quickly remembering himself, stood straight. “Alright, Sir…?”

“George. Just George, Your Highness.” The man, George, stated plainly. “I would appreciate it if we could hurry, Sire, as I’ve got some errands to finish before your celebration.” Dream snorts. 

“Something you needed a princely escort for?” Dream asks, amused as he approaches the door, following George out of his chambers and into the hall, where the man quickly shuts the door and begins to speed away. Surprised, it takes Dream a moment to catch up. 

“Hardly. But it makes my life easier to kill two birds with one stone.” George states, almost smug. Bold, Dream thinks. Or, well, potentially stupid, on Dream’s part. This could very well be some stranger he’s decided to follow. Maybe the metaphor of murder was more accurate than the prince had first thought. How thrilling. Dream, amused, decides to test this out.

“Another student of Sir Halo, I presume?” The man whips around, fixing Dream with what he feels should be called a piercing gaze.

“And how did you come to that conclusion?” 

“Didn’t you know? Most, if not all Royals have varying degrees of telepathy.” Who needs a mask when you’ve got a poker face like Dream’s? His expression was carefully constructed into that of someone who had better things to do than lie to a servant. _Jokes on him,_ Dream thought with only a tinge of bitterness, _I really don’t._

The man leans backward ever so slightly, calculating. “I’m the son of a Baron, and I’ve yet to hear about this.” Dream gives a polite smile. 

“Well, not everyone has it. Maybe they just didn’t want you to feel lesser because of your lack of ability.” Was it rude? Maybe. But he’s 16, Dream is determined to have fun while he can. 

“Mhmmm.” George shifts his weight, fully turning towards the young prince. “He told you to expect me, didn’t he?” Dream cannot help but grin. 

“Yes, he did. Something about a future advisor?” 

“A position I’ll come to regret accepting, I’m sure.” Already exasperated, but sounding ever so slightly amused, George returns to his mad dash of errands, troublesome prince spewing an impressive amount of bullshit behind him. 

\--------------------------

The sun began to set, casting long dark shadows on everything it touched. It lit everything with a warm glow, which he normally would have found comforting, if it didn’t make him feel so terribly lonely. The forest stood tall and strong, seemingly carrying on for an eternity- he was unable to tell one set of branches from the next as they blanketed him from they sky above. Realistically, he knew that it had to end sometime soon. He sat still, knees drawn up to his chest as he tracked the final rays of daylight with tired eyes. Maybe it really did carry on for forever. The world hummed around him; sun forcing life into the very bones of the woods he currently resided in, but he remained deaf to it all. Lost to himself, he watched the watery image of the sun kiss the ground, and buried his face further into his arms. He didn’t dare break eye contact with the dying breath of daylight, almost wishing it would stop rushing.

Take its time.

But it didn’t.

It kept sinking, eventually gracing him with his old golden hue. Any other day, he would have cursed- colourful and childish for the hell of it, swatting the light out of his eyes as if it were nothing more than a fly and continued on with his life. Today, however, the finality was infectious. The sun would rise again, but he would not be here when it did. A spring breeze, heavy with the promise of rain ruffled the leaves, lifting his loose tunic from his person before gently laying back against his skin in a gross imitation of human touch. His fingers curled into his sleeves and he rose, taking care to brush himself off before glancing at the sun once more. _Just a little bit longer,_ he wanted to ask.

Just give me one more chance.

Was he really so bothersome that even the sun wouldn’t keep him company? So bratty and pathetic that even something as permanent as that would leave him lonely? The boy sniffled, thoughts racing much too fast for him to process. He was sad. He knew he was, but for now, he’ll pretend. He rubbed furiously at his eyes, and walked. If even the sun was going to be a dick about it, he might as well leave first. 

No point in walking home in the dark, anyways. He’s got no reason to remember the path he took. He’s not stupid enough to think Dream would actually come back this time.

_He’s sick of waiting. ___

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry it took me so long to post another chapter-   
> I had wanted to finish more parts before I continued but alas fuck my life ya feel  
> so here's the final bit of the prologue before the real drama kicks in :)
> 
> Sapnap? A drama queen? More likely than you think.


End file.
